


INTERLUDE: Bleed Out

by Koren M (CyberMathWitch)



Series: Heavy In Your Arms [2]
Category: Marvel Avengers Movies Universe, The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst, F/M, Mentions of attempted suicide, Original Character Death(s), Soul Bond, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-10-14
Updated: 2012-10-14
Packaged: 2017-11-16 07:29:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/537013
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CyberMathWitch/pseuds/Koren%20M
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <b>
    <i>She looked beautiful in repose.</i>
  </b>
</p>
<p>
  <b>No one survives the loss of their soulmate.  That's the theory, anyway.  </b>
</p>
<p>(A interlude for "Heavy in Your Arms" - can be read at any point in the series.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	INTERLUDE: Bleed Out

**Author's Note:**

> **Please read/heed the warnings.**
> 
> Also, this is unbeta-ed. It grabbed me and I wanted to get it out of my head (for obvious reasons) and onto the screen. 
> 
> It was originally published between Chapters 2 & 3.

Her hair spilled in a halo around her head, indistinguishable from the dark pool seeping out beneath her body - colors were indistinguishable in the shadowy warehouse.

The shot was pinpoint accurate; a neat, tiny hole through her heart _(he owed her nothing less than his best after all)_ if any blood soaked through her shirt it wasn't visible on black fabric.

She looked beautiful in repose.

She'd always been the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. From the first moment, she'd reminded him of some kind of graceful sculpture, white marble skin and carved ebony hair, dusted with a golden sort of a glow. He was the least sentimental person on the planet but he'd never been able to think of her in anything less that poetic terms. 

He didn't remember his knees hitting the floor, didn't remember putting the gun to his head when some distant part of his brain realized he wasn't dying along with her, that his heart was still beating even though it had been ripped out of his chest and was lying dead in front of him on the floor.

He felt it when she died.

The space she left was a screaming, empty void.

He tried to fill it with a bullet.

*****

He woke up in the hospital three weeks later with doctors, psychologists and armed guards hovering over his bed.

The doctors told him he'd retained vision in his right eye, but they hadn't been able to save the left.

The psychologists told him about the stages of grief, and pretended like they had a clue what would happen when the bond was broken (even while giving one another side-long glances and murmuring quietly about averages and odds and "we've never seen this before.")

The armed guards stood stoic and alert. Agents from SHIELD HQ commended him for stopping the information from leaving the country, reiterated how vital it was that the codes for their weapons arsenal never reached North Korean hands. He was praised for his quick thinking and action.

One agent went so far as to praise loyalty and selfless devotion to duty.

*****

The doctors were impressed with his recovery time and how easily he adapted to his loss of depth perception.

The psychologists wrote down formulaic platitudes about losing someone, about betrayal, and about "finding something to hold on to" and then reluctantly signed off on his clearance because what the hell else were they supposed to do?

SHIELD command gave him a medal and a promotion, and hinted that he was being fast-tracked up the ladder that would eventually lead to the Director's chair.

If anyone gave her a proper burial, he was unaware of the location of her grave.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Heavy In Your Arms: Interludes: Podfic](https://archiveofourown.org/works/1116913) by [litrapod (litra)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/litra/pseuds/litrapod)




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